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The Latest Advances in Construction Equipment

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Though the common mental image of a construction worker is that of a person in a yellow hard hat doing manual labor, the modern reality doesn’t always look that way. Commercial construction is a constantly moving, constantly evolving industry, one that values innovation and change.

This overarching philosophy is prominent in the latest rapid advances that the industry has made in its equipment and technologies. Learn more about these advances below, courtesy of Miller Architects & Builders, your Minnesota commercial contractors of choice.

Telematics

Excavators, commercial framers, plasterers; sub-contractors of all specialities need all the construction management resources they can get, especially when it comes to on-the-ground fleet tracking. A recent revelation in the world of construction equipment has been the emergence of telematics, specifically offering sub-contractors more insight analysis for monitoring any and all transportative information to help provide more cost-effective operational solutions.

According to CONEXPO / CON AGG, a Las Vegas construction and agricultural convention, “telematics provides a number of benefits to the construction industry including increased productivity, greater efficiency, and heightened {sic} security of the operations.” In short, they’re a pretty important advancement right now—but what exactly are they?

Telematics is, essentially, technology that helps construction project managers monitor their machines from afar. When you can’t be everywhere at once, this of course comes in handy. Telematics create and transfer easily accessible data regarding everything from fuel consumption to where the machine is, making it easy for sub-contractors to ensure high degrees of on-site productivity.

Drones

They have been a hot topic for a while now, and they continue to be today. Drones have come a long way from the niche backyard recreational machines they used to be; nowadays, your commercial contractor might use them for anything from showing a client how things are coming along to pre-planning a project to ensuring worker safety, according to UAV Coach.

To learn more about the importance of drones in our industry, check out our commercial construction management blog on the topic.

Self-Healing Concrete

Sounds like something straight out of science fiction? Not quite! Thanks to helpful bacteria mixed into the concrete, the industry is now seeing a substance that can heal its own cracks. This advancement has big implications for contractors who value building green—but those are not its only potential benefits. According to Beroe Advantage Procurement, “Self-healing concrete could add many years to a building’s lifespan and be an enormous advantage, both time-wise and financially.”

Though this tech hasn’t yet been widely adopted and is still in its developmental period, it shows great promise from multiple standpoints..

Miller Architects & Builders: Cutting-Edge Commercial Construction

From the architectural design stage to the heavy-lifting, we use thoroughly modern technology to create builds of the highest quality. Reach our Saint Cloud office today at 320-251-4109.